America’s Worst Volunteer Firefighter is in Suburban Philly; Identified in The Daily Beast

If any one of the over 160 criminal charges filed against him are true, it would be astronomically difficult to argue with The Beast’s opinion that he is America's Worst Volunteer Firefighter.

Sadly, we see these news headlines all too often: Firefighter Charged with Setting Fires. What we don't see, usually never see, is a case like this volunteer firefighter. Authorities claim this guy, already out on bond from serial arson charges, did some other really, really, really bad things.

“… He has been charged with 161 counts of sexual assault for allegedly coercing more than a dozen children to engage in lewd acts with him. According to investigators, some of the crimes occurred as recently as December while (he) was out on bail for a separate case. He had been charged with arson—suspected of starting some of the fires he volunteered to fight.”

Interestingly, the report drills down a bit into the psychology- indeed the personal profile- of firefighter-arsonists. Do you find yourself thinking of anyone you know? I believe I know your answer.

"The FBI has identified a number of traits common to firefighter-arsonists that track closely with (his) background—parental aloofness, above average intelligence, and low social integration."

The report concludes with just about the only glimmer of good news. Although the research is still ongoing, cases involving both serial arson AND pedophilia as motivating factors are extremely rare.

If you haven't already seen it, you might find this article interesting as well: